The usual solar collector includes a generally black mat structure for absorbing radiant solar energy. This structure generally includes a matrix or series of tubes or pipes in heat transfer relationship with the mat through which a heat transfer fluid such as water is circulated by means of a pump to convey the absorbed thermal energy to a location remote from the solar collector for storage or for immediate use. The various tubes or pipes may be interconnected in series or in parallel or in combination thereof in any manner necessary to optimally match the mat with the characteristics of the pump. In the case of parallel tubes, u-shaped connectors are used for series connections and headers for parallel connections.
Flexible mat structures of generally parallel elastomeric tubes are well known. They provide low cost designs which are relatively immune to breakage. Also the use of flexible material permits the incorporation of webs and tear lines between adjacent tubes to allow the mat to be trimmed to a desired width.
However, the elastomeric mat structures are not as thermally conductive as their metal counterparts, and therefore, thermal energy absorbed by substantially large webs between adjacent tubes is not efficiently transferred to the fluid circulating in the pipes.